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Transcript of message from TV Broadcast 685 -- taken from Closed Captioning Text -- Bro. Tony Talbert: Praise God. I'll be real brief here. Let me ask you a couple of questions. We're here tonight, and this is not just a formal gathering. I'm burdened in my heart for people. There's some needs here tonight...people coming to faith. I'll tell you, we're not playing church. This is no fun and games here, as far as like the world goes. You know, you come for a social gathering, afterwards you eat some vittles or whatever and you go about your own way. This is a serious thing here we're a part of, and we need to treat it like that. I believe God's dealing with hearts here tonight...even in the song service there. I felt like He was drawing, He was speaking. I appreciated Tim in the [songs] he sang there. I believe the Lord's saying exactly what he was singing. He was saying come. I believe that's happening tonight. ( congregational amens ). And I believe He's speaking to individuals--specific individuals that need to come to faith, that need to come to a place of rest that they will not have apart from Christ. You know the Gospel...we all have this life here. We don't have no promise of how long it is. But do you desire for eternity? That's what I desire. You can't have that apart from Christ. You can live your life...it can be a life of misery. You sow to the lust of your flesh, the lust of your eye, the pride of life. The devil, he throws out things left and right trying to entice you to come in. But it's vanity. Solomon had everything he could desire. He said whatever his heart desired he would not keep from himself. And at the end of it, he said it's all "...vanity and vexation of spirit, and there was no profit under the sun." There's a Gospel that's being ministered here tonight. I believe it will be. These men are capable to minister this Christ, beloved. Without Him you have nothing! ( congregational amens ). I'm telling you, this world stinks. You can take it all and pour it in a rat hole. It's nothing. It means nothing without Christ. When Christ comes in, He gives you a peace--a peace that passes all understanding. You don't need the things of the world. ( congregational amens ). You don't have to have 'em. You can have Him...that's all you need in your brethren. He's not floating around in the clouds somewhere, He's in your brethren. You can fellowship. You're not alone no more. As you go through things, you have Him to help you. ( congregational amens ). He'll speak to your brother. He'll come and help you. You're not alone no more. In this world without Christ, you are alone. They use you, they abuse you, and then they cast you aside and trample you over. ( congregational amens ). God help us to see that. We're blind if we don't see that. If you think that the things you're going through, the things you want to satisfy your flesh through sex, or through drugs, you want to try this, or you want to try that. It's a dead end street--it's a dead end street! God help us to have a desire...only He could give us that in our heart. ( congregational amens ). You know the Word says, no man can come to the Father, but the Father which has sent me draw him. We need God to help us to draw hearts! ( congregational amens ). And I believe He is. I believe He is tonight. I don't know there might not be but one, but it's worth it if it's just one! ( congregational praise ). I tell you we've come to the Kingdom for such time as this. We need to be busy about the Master's business. I tell you there's...you don't have no promise. You could get out on that highway tonight and die. What are you gonna do without Christ? You're gonna die in your sins. He's here to help us tonight. ( congregational amens ). I think of that scripture over in...it's the one Brother Thomas used. I'm just gonna use part of it. It's in Hebrews 3. You don't even need to turn there. He says, "To day...." He didn't say tomorrow. He didn't say yesterday. He said, "To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts...." It's not...if the Lord is speaking, if the Lord is drawing you tonight in the service here, in the songs, God...I can tell you, the Lord's here and He's drawing some. It may not be but one, I'll say it again, but it's worth it. My God, let us take heed to what He's saying to us. Without Him we have nothing. -- Brother Jim Easterly: You know you want to be led of the Lord so much at a time like this. Here we are right at the end of another meeting. I thought well, you know we had a service Thursday night...salvation service where God met people's needs and we had an invitation. Some of these things were heavy on my heart. Some of the things that came in the song service...that song that Tim and Cheryl sang, and "His Life For Mine." And then Tony, when he said if there was just one. And as I came in here tonight, I knew there was at least one. ( congregational amens ). Beloved, there's a place where it refers...Jesus was talking about this and He said, the shepherd leaves the ninety and nine and goes to rescue that one. ( congregational amens ). Amen. This is 2nd Corinthians chapter 5. Let's start in verse 18. He says, "All this is from God...." (NIV). And in the interest of time I'm just gonna give you a brief thing of what 'all this' is. Back up here a little earlier in this chapter, he says, "Since, then, we know what it is to fear the Lord, we try to persuade men." And in the King James, he says, "Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men...." Beloved there is a...I'll tell you what, if you ever see God, you can't do anything but bow your knee. You know Jesus said in one place...He said, don't fear him that can just kill the body. And there's plenty of fear of that. You look at all the...I mean, we pay tremendous salaries to policemen, and investigators, and detectives, security guards. We spend money on alarm systems. We fear those that can kill the body, but He said, that's not really the one to fear. He said, we need to fear Him that can destroy both body and soul in Hell. We need to fear God--we need to fear God. "Since, then, we know what it is to fear the Lord, we try to persuade men." (NIV). And he says...in another place in there he says, "For Christ's love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died." And that's the message right there. The only way you'll ever taste of eternal life, is if you come to the place where you realize you can't attain it, and Christ's death is the only thing that will pay that sin debt for you. That's what we want to show you tonight. So he says, "All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation." You know the only way you can come to Christ is to come to those that Christ is in. I could turn through here and prove this to you in twenty different places, but Jesus Himself said, if you don't receive those that I send, you can't receive Me. And He said, if you reject them and reject Me, you reject the One that sent Me. Beloved, we are ambassadors for Christ and we did not attain to this. This is not an office we ran for, or lobbied for. God put us together as a Body and there is not a single part of this Body that's insignificant. But in this Body, God has put those that stand in the stead of Christ, and beg you to come to Him. We are ambassadors for Christ. It says, verse 20, "We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ's behalf: Be reconciled to God. God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. As God's fellow workers we urge you not to receive God's grace in vain." And do you know that it's God's grace you're here tonight? ( congregational amens ). This is Saturday night. There's a lot of stuff you could be doing tonight. And I don't care why you think you're here. We don't believe in coincidences. I believe God is powerful. I believe He's sovereign. ( congregational amens ). And those that are born again know that God orchestrated their steps. There's a place in Proverbs we read the other night that says, man plans his ways, plans his things, but God directs his steps. And it's the grace of God that you're here tonight. We urge you not to receive God's grace in vain. "For he says, In the time of my favor I heard you, and in the day of salvation I helped you. I tell you, now is the time of God's favor, now is the day of salvation." I urge you not to take God's grace in vain tonight. I want to read just a little bit over here in 2nd Peter. This'll take just a minute... just this and one other short scripture, and I'll be finished. I believe God wants to help somebody here tonight. I believe that with all my heart. And like Tony said, I don't care if this whole meeting was for one person. I don't care if everything I ever spent in my life was for one person. My God, wouldn't that be worth it? ( congregational amens ). What else is there really to live for, when you see it? Amen. Let's...2nd Peter chapter 2 and verse 4, "For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but sent them to hell, putting them into gloomy dungeons to be held for judgment; if he did not spare the ancient world when he brought the flood on its ungodly people, but protected Noah, a preacher of righteousness, and seven others; if he condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah by burning them to ashes, and made..."--and think about this--"...made them an example of what is going to happen to the ungodly." Who wants to stand in that place? Nobody needs to stand there, beloved. You have an opportunity tonight to change your destiny. "...And if he rescued Lot, a righteous man...." And that's what we're talking about tonight. You know tonight could be your day of rescue. ( congregational amens ). God could reach in and rescue you, if you could humble your heart. Humble yourself under the mighty hand of God. "...And if he rescued Lot, a righteous man, who was distressed...." And here's another thing. You know Jimmy, referring to me and Phil, he says, they're not perfect. We're talking about Lot here. You know when he had a chance, buddy, he laid it to Abraham! He left him out there where there wasn't nothing for sheep to eat. He went down and took the well-watered plain, down by Sodom. You think he was perfect in the world's eyes? I know some of you probably got hang-ups with me and those of you that don't know me well enough, it'd just be a matter of getting to know me. ( laughter ). But I'm gonna tell you something, if God gives me five minutes of anointed, life-giving ministry, you need that. ( congregational amens ). Amen. It's not the vessel. It's what the vessel contains! ( congregational amens ). Praise God. And did you know, as crazy as it sounds, the Bible says, "...It pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe." (KJV). Thank God He brought a preacher across my path. ( congregational amens ). Praise God. Amen. "...If he rescued Lot, a righteous man, who was distressed by the filthy lives of lawless men...." (NIV). You know why Lot was a righteous man? 'Cause Christ's blood was gonna be applied to his account. He believed God--he believed God in his day. He wasn't perfect, but he believed God. He was like Abraham. He, "...believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness." You got a chance to believe God tonight. And I know you've been listening to a lot of other crap. And this thing Tony was talking about...all the enticing things of this world. Listen, somebody got up here one day and it was one of the best pictures I've ever seen of this. He talked about that fisherman that gets that absolutely juicy...I mean, big worm. And that fisherman, he doesn't get up at four in the morning and drive forty miles, climb through a barbed wire fence, and hike three miles through rocks and brambles and ant beds, and get down to that fishing hole so he can feed that fish. ( laughter ). When he puts that worm on that hook, he has a completely different plan in mind for that fish. I'm talking about the frying pan. ( laughter ). The frying pan. Now you think the devil is interested in you having a good time? All he's interested in is getting his hooks in you. Brother Thomas used to say this so often--he said, he will take you places you don't want to go. He will keep you longer than you want to stay. And there was about ten others things to that, but that's really all you need to know. He does not have your best interest at heart. God does! ( congregational amens ). And you have an opportunity tonight. "(For that righteous man, living among them day after day, was tormented in his righteous soul by the lawless deeds he saw and heard)--if this is so, then the Lord knows how to rescue godly men from trials and to hold the unrighteous for the day of judgment, while continuing their punishment. This is especially true of those who follow the corrupt desire of the sinful nature and despise authority." There's a judgment day coming. It's appointed unto men once to die and then the judgment. And I'm gonna tell you something...whatever condition you're in when you die, that's it. We had two kids in Lake City die last week. Well I guess it was the week before last, wasn't it? Friday? Saturday morning? Those kids were both 18 years old. Do you think either one of them left home that night, or wherever they stayed, and thought that before daylight they would have to face the Lord? Do you think that they thought about something like that? You don't either. I don't know when my time's coming. Me and Phil are planning to make this trip now. God may come back or He may require our soul of us before then. I don't want to miss Him between now and then. I want to be sensitive to Him. Praise God! And you know...this is the bottom line now. I mean this is the truth, beloved. Whatever condition those kids were in spiritually at 4:30, at 4:45 when they died, that's how they ended up. You've got an opportunity tonight--you've got an opportunity tonight. You know Noah preached--it says, it refers to him as a preacher of righteousness. And you know in that whole time span--I think it was something like 120 years or something that he preached, from the time God told him what was going to happen, there was only seven other people that got in the ark with him. Don't you want to be one of those? I mean I know it looks just as real to you as it did to the other, however many people there were in the earth at that day. What are you talking about a flood, and rain, and stuff? They hadn't even seen rain fall out of the sky. You've never seen fire and brimstone fall out of the sky, have you? -- Brother Jimmy Robbins: It's coming. -- Brother Jim Easterly: It's gonna happen...and that Sodom and Gomorrah was just a small taste of it. We're not gonna escape that, unless we're in Him. But He is giving somebody an opportunity tonight to be rescued--rescued, rescued. And I mean that is forever. You know He said that the ones His Father did give Him, He said, no man could pluck 'em out of His Father's hands. ( congregational amens ). I'm gonna tell you something. Eternal life is eternal. You ever bow your knee to Jesus Christ and His Spirit comes in you, you're set for eternity. And I'll guarantee you, if that happens, we won't have to exhort you 365 days a year to do this and do that. You'll have something in you cries Abba, Father. ( congregational amens ). Lord God, you'll realize the most precious Life the world has ever seen, was laid down to pay for your sin debt. You'll want to serve Him then. ( congregational amens ). You'll want to serve Him. I mean really, what out there between now and the time you leave this world would be worth eternity? What would be worth it? What kind of deal is that? That's not something that even needs to be negotiated. It's a no-brainer--His life for mine. Praise God! I mean, I had nothing to trade--I had nothing to trade. Everything I thought was so hot, it was like a balloon. It got popped with a pin when I saw it. I can honestly say like Paul did, that he counted it but dung. I don't know what word he used. That's a polite word. But I'm telling you, everything I had planned was crap. ( laughter ). It was. It wouldn't serve me. It wouldn't serve you. And it daggone sure would not serve me in eternity. What does it matter what you could gather up here? People just try to get all they can. And I've heard people say, get all they can, and can all they get. My God, that can is just gonna be there when you go. Praise God! What kind of trade is that? ( congregational amens ). Amen. I appreciate God giving us an opportunity. And I don't care to see a thousand people down here, I just want whoever God's dealing with in their heart! ( congregational amens ). Praise God! Praise God! And it's for you tonight--it's for you. That's why we're here. That's why God has put this one unique gathering together tonight. There'll never be exactly like this again. And we don't any of us know where we'll be in the morning, for real. But He's giving you an opportunity tonight. -- Brother Steve Sharpe: Praise the Lord. I don't know what you think you're hearing, but it's not a retired UPS driver or a construction supervisor. It's Jesus Christ Himself. ( congregational amens ). And if you don't think so, then ask God to open your eyes, because you're blind. Turn with me to Luke, chapter 4. Let's go to verse 18. Well, let's back up a little bit to 16. Speaking of Jesus, it says, "And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up for to read. And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written...." (KJV). He went to a specific place, for a specific purpose. And He said, "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, To preach the acceptable year of the Lord. And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. "And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him. And he began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears. And all bare him witness, and wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth. And they said, Is not this Joseph's son?" You know, you might be sitting there and said, well, if Jesus was here, I'd listen to Him. I know that rascal...as Jim said, that rascal Jim, but I'm here to tell you tonight that Christ used Jim. ( congregational amens ). The Spirit of the Lord was upon him. There's somebody here that needs...that's poor. You're empty. You have nothing. You have no price to carry. "In my hand no price I bring, simply to Thy cross I cling." That's the only thing you need to have when you get to the other side, as Jimmy said. It's being offered to you here tonight. Are you brokenhearted? Has the world let you down? God's here to heal your broken heart. Are you in bondage? Have you given in to your fleshly desires? Does the enemy have you wrapped up, and so bound so tight you can't even raise your head? Christ will loose the chains right now. ( congregational amens ). Are you blind? Can you not see this? Lift up your heart and say, God, open my eyes. Help me to see what these men are talking about. I want to know you. I want to understand what they're saying. And tonight's the night for it. I want to go to the scripture that Jim just read and I want to read the King James Version of it. Chapter 6, of 2nd Corinthians, verse 2. When has He heard us? "...In a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I succoured thee: behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation." There's no other day for you, if God's speaking to you. Not some other time, not some other place, not some other way. Are you ashamed to claim Him as your Lord and Savior? He wasn't ashamed when He went up that hill. And He was beaten, and He was bruised, and He suffered. He was ridiculed. He had you on His heart--you on His heart! Me, on His heart, specifically! ( congregational praise ). He has you on His heart tonight. Won't you come and receive Him, be set free, be washed and clean! Praise His name! Hallelujah! ( congregational amens ). 
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